AFGHANISTAN. Nangalam, Kunar. 2007. A soldier waking up after an unsuccessful search for an insurgent leader in a village in eastern
Afghanistan. The patrol had left the base at dusk. As it neared the village, a dog started barking.
His warning was quickly taken up by the other dogs of the valley, and soon the mountains
echoed with their howls. The mountain trail was steep and slippery, and it took another thirty
minutes until the patrol reached the village. A confused and frantic search turned up nothing.
Exhausted, we climbed to the top of the mountain and slept for a few hours on the roof of a
house. In the morning the young lieutenant called together a meeting of the village elders. He
yelled at them for collaborating with the insurgents. They eyed him coolly and replied that they
would strongly consider helping the Americans if they were able to provide security but that this
was the first time they’d seen an American patrol in months.